26 May 2015

Aqua Dragons Jurassic Time Travel Eggspedition with LED lights

J is learning all about growth at nursery school. They have
been watching potatoes sprout, growing their own cress and waiting for very
hungry caterpillars to morph into butterflies. And he has been going on about
wanting a pet. There is absolutely no way I am getting him a dog or a cat or a
fish or a rabbit. At least not until he is old enough to care for them with
minimal adult supervision.

When I heard about Aqua Dragons, they seemed like just the
things to introduce J to the idea of having his own pet, while at the same time
reinforcing the concept of growth he has been learning about. They sounded
fascinating, with their 200 million year history. J knows all about
dinosaurs (who doesn’t), so the Aqua Dragons would be a lovely way to talk about
evolution, fossils and extinction with him. Perhaps not in so many words, but they
could help with ideas about time and life.

The Aqua Dragons Jurassic Time Travel Eggspedition with LED lights arrived in the post to tremendous excitement in the C-house. The
Aqua Dragons EggSpedition tank is made of plastic and sits on a LED light base
unit that houses the two AAA batteries. I was really pleased that the batteries
were included with the unit. The last thing you want is wait to buy new
batteries, when all you want to do is see how your new toy operates.

The tank has its own bubble pump that you use to oxygenate
the water that the aqua dragons swim in. The Jurassic Time Travel
Eggspedition also comes with a packet of aqua dragon eggs, a pack of feed, a
little feeding spoon, an instruction manual and activity book, a sheet of
stickers and a poster to colour in. There is a little dino baby model at the
base of the tank, which makes for a very cute addition.

J was really excited by the idea of having his own dragons,
albeit a little apprehensive at the same time. He was imagining fire-breathing
dragons with huge wings. So I had to explain that these were little dragons
like sea-horses that swam in the water.

They are real live aquatic creatures that have survived for millions of years in a sort of hibernating state. Their eggs hatch once they come in contact with water. So Aqua Dragons really are time travellers, surviving in the same form they did all those years ago when dinosaurs ruled the earth.

J wanted to help with the set-up. So I delegated the task
of shaking 380 mls of bottled water to him. This was done to oxygenate the
water. He then poured the water into the tank. I carefully emptied the aqua
dragon eggs and closed the tank.

Now it was a matter of wait and watch. We kept the tank near
a window so it gets sunlight and warmth. By next morning, we could see tiny
white specks floating about. This meant that some of the eggs had hatched and
we had our baby aqua dragons. J was thrilled, and immediately wanted to feed
them. The instructions dictated that feeding should commence 48 hours after
set-up. J was happy to wait till the
next day.

We have since been oxygenating the tank on a
daily basis using the pump and feeding the aqua dragons at regular intervals. Our aqua dragons are now growing.

They are still quite small. But it is fascinating to watch them. J and I are both excited to see how they develop. We hope they continue
to thrive and we can see all the different stages in their life cycle. I am
secretly hoping that they breed, so that we get a fresh crop of aqua dragon
eggs.

It has been a very long time since the days of high-school
biology. But these resilient little creatures have just revived my interest.
They are a constant reminder of how fascinating life can be. I hope J feels the same way after his interaction with these amazing creatures.

Disclaimer: We were sent a set of Aqua Dragons Jurassic Time Travel Eggspedition with LED lights by @Brainstormltd for the purpose of this review. All opinions are my own.